Genoa on loan in the opening days of the 2007–08 winter transfer window. On 3 July 2008, he was sent on loan to Genoa again for €1 million with the Ligurian club having the option to purchase half of his contract for €5.5 million. In February 2009, he scored his first goal since returning to Genoa, the winner against Palermo. In June 2009 Genoa excised the option to sign him in a co-ownership for pre-agreed price. He was very impressive after re-joining Genoa, who were back in Serie A by then, and he retained a place in the starting line-up as Gian Piero Gasperini's first choice left-back. However, he did not rule out a return to Juventus after being linked to a permanent return to replace Fabio Grosso. In September against Napoli, Criscito was shown a straight red card for allegedly swearing at the referee after being penalized for a foul on Christian Maggio, but Gasperini later defended the 23-year-old saying that he was angry at himself, not the referee. The appeal to rescind the red card was turned down, but his ban was reduced to two to three matchdays. On 25 June 2010, Juventus announced that the Criscito's remaining 50% registration rights were sold for another €6 million fee. However co-currently 50% registration rights of Leonardo Bonucci was signed from Genoa via Bari for €8 million. Zenit On 27 June 2011, Criscito signed for Russian Premier League club Zenit for €11 million fee. He penned a five-year contract with the club. He made his debut for the club on 6 August in a 2–0 away victory against CSKA Moscow, providing an assist for teammate Aleksandr Kerzhakov. He ended the season as a league champion, his first career silverware. On 12 July 2015, he scored the winning penalty in a 4–2 shoot-out victory in the 2015 Russian Super Cup over Lokomotiv Moscow. On 8 May 2018, he announced that he will be leaving Zenit upon the expiration of his contract at the end of the 2017–18 season. A game against FC SKA-Khabarovsk was his official farewell game for Zenit. Third spell in Genoa In May 2018, it was reported that Criscito had announced to sign for his former club Genoa via his personal Instagram account. His return was officially announced by the club on 24 May. A few days later he was assigned number 4 shirt. Criscito's contract with Genoa